[stentman]

How far apart should fruit trees be planted? Our small allotment group has been kindly given 30 fruit trees of various sorts. Apples, pears plums from what I understand. I have spoke to our secretary who took the donation but he has been given no indication what root stock they are grafted onto, whether they are dwarf stock etc.  Available space is not an issue for us, we have more than enough room to space them quite far apart if needed. though I understand that certain types need fellow pollenators close by. Sorry the info is vague but the thought of having our own orchard in 10 years or so was to good to pass up. Given the very scant info we have can anyone offer any suggestions.

[Trillium]

All but 2 of my trees are dwarf so I spaced the dwarfs 10 ft apart as they're not really so dwarf now that they've had a few years. This allows free root spread with no interference which is what you really want, along with good airflow. If they were columnar types that you'd train to a fence, then 2 ft apart is adequate. As few standard (full size) trees are grown anymore (due to difficulty of picking and long maturity dates) then the rest might be semi-dwarfs which could use 15-20 feet apart, even up to 40. When you look at the small trunk size now these spacings seem exorbitant, but trust me, in a few years time you'll be glad. And while they're still small, stake them well at planting time (before you fill in the hole) so they'll have some support for a few years against icing or snowfall. Mine now need strong support due to the heavy cropping.

[DavidT]

Modern fruit trees tend too come on semi dwarfing root stock, so I would suggest a spacing of about 15ft all round. Don`t worry about pollinating, as long as they are within a half mile radius you`ll be fine. What a generous donation, though.

[stentman]

Big thanks for the info so far we have a meeting to decide planting spots this Thursday evening. All input is very welcome as we are 16 relative newbies to allotmenteering and certainly new to orchard creation.

[gillie]

Fifteen feet is probably OK, but a bit more might be preferable for apples, especially as you do not know the rootstock.  Pears tend to grow straight upwards and on the whole plum trees are a bit smaller and could go closer together.

They will  need staking for their first few years and decide whether you are going to need rabbit guards round the stems.  Keep a circle of about four feet around each trunk clear of grass and weeds until  they are well established.   This is probably best done with a weedkiller as you should not dig around and damage the roots.   Very dwarf trees need clear soil and staking for their entire lives. 

After severe weather, either wind or frost, check that your trees are still firmly planted and have not come loose.  NEVER let someone use a strimmer close to them and damage the bark.

While you are planting you could pop some narcissus bulbs into the circles. 

Read up about pruning and start training your trees while they are young - do not let them get out of hand and then wonder what to do about it.  Plums do not need much pruning and it should only be done in the summer, but they may need netting against birds.

Enjoy your trees!  Watch how they develop and respond to their needs.

Cheers,

Gillie